Eat Local Milwaukee – Blogger Challenge!

Get ready, heat up your Staubs, organize your spice cabinet, and let’s get cooking for the 4th annual Eat Local Challenge! We have been selected to be one of 5 food bloggers from the Milwaukee area to participate in this 2-week challenge to eat local.

I (Mandi) will, for two weeks, eat nothing but local food (as defined by me, see below) and blog about my experience. The challenge will take place September 1-14. You can check back here every day for progress reports on how I’m doing. I anticipate much difficulty finding locally-grown/produced grains, proteins, and spices in this concrete jungle, and I’m sure there will be a bit of grumbling on my part based upon the things I won’t be able to eat in regards to my definition of “eat local” below. I should probably also mention I am starting a low-carb diet tomorrow. This may or may not make the challenge more difficult.

I’m excited to take this challenge. I’m honored to have the opportunity to share my experience with you. I hope you can join me, even in some small way, in supporting local businesses and food producers, which is good for our environment as well as our local economy.

What “Eating Local” Means to Me:“Eating Local” for the purposes of this challenge, as I define it, means anything grown and produced in the state of Wisconsin. I reserve the right to make an exception for items necessary for a meal but yet are not grown/produced in Wisconsin – whether for historical, climatological, or cultural reasons. These items include, but may not be limited to, spices, baking ingredients like sugar, baking soda, and flour, and olive oil. My use of these exceptions will be as limited as possible. My one trump card is coffee. I must have the coffee, and I will heed to the restrictions of this challenge by only enjoying coffee brewed from local roasters.

Join Me!You can join me in taking the challenge of eating locally – whatever that means to you – from September 1 – 14.

In addition, you can join me for the Eat Local Resource Fair THIS SATURDAY to learn more about eating local, where you can get locally-produced foods, and how you can make this a part of a permanent lifestyle.